Diego Moreira hopes to fight for a place in Mauricio Pochettino's Chelsea starting lineup having joined from Benfica earlier in the summer
Perhaps more than most Diego Moreira will be familiar with the sounds of Mauricio Pochettino's instructions. Having served his debut on the right flank in North Carolina, he was subject to plenty of attention from the new Chelsea boss with whom he shared a sideline.
He explained: "He [Pochettino] is a very great coach, he talks to everyone and helps a lot and gives a lot of advice. He is important for the young players and makes us all comfortable."
"It has been cool," Moreira added. "I feel comfortable. The team helped me. We are a very good group. We’re like a family. It has been easy [to fit in]. We won the games and I am very happy."
"I was at Benfica last year and they contacted me a while ago and they sold me the project they have for me," explained Moreira.
"I just joined because Chelsea is one of the biggest clubs in England and the world. I was happy when Chelsea contacted me. It is a feeling I can’t explain because you are young and it was like a dream. me and my family were really happy."
Safe to say, he looked up to a number of Stamford Bridge legends.
He said: "Didier Drogba, Hazard, Frank Lampard, John Terry, Willian and Matic were all great players. But Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Ronaldinho and Zlatan Ibrahimovic also [inspired me]. They are all legends."
Moreira is one 10 teenagers to have made Chelsea's squad for their pre-season tour of the United States. Some already appear destined for a season elsewhere, with Angelo Gabriel in particular expected to head to Strasbourg on loan.
Chelsea's starlet hopes to impress Pochettino to earn a place in the side.
He said: "The plan is me to work hard and to win my place in the team and play. I just need to work and show I am ready to help my team.
"Of course, I have to grab my chance and give me best in every game and every minute that I play."
Just days into the tour, the youngster has already seen the responsibilities that lie with being a member of Chelsea's senior side. Moreira joined the club's foundation at Philadelphia's U90 Soccer Center to participate in a youth clinic alongside Ian Maatsen and Gary Cahill.
He said: "It is a great thing to do and I love sharing these moment with the kids. I also trained like this [at grassroots level] so it is good to give them a lot of advice, share our experience and it is cool. It is my second time in the United States and I just enjoying it."
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